The exemplary embodiments generally relate to providing hands-free operation of a communications device, and more particularly, to providing voice commands that emulate a user's interaction with the communications device.
Mobile communications devices, such as cellular phones, pagers and personal digital assistants (“PDAs”), have made it easier to reach users. Users of the communications devices typically carry the communications devices with them allowing a caller or sender to reach a user regardless of the user's location. However, there are times when a user misses a communication because interacting with the communications device is inconvenient or impossible. If a user is performing a task that requires both hands, then the user may not be able to interact with a communications device to receive a communication. For example, if a parent is grocery shopping with a couple of children, the parent may be using both hands to control the children and the grocery cart and may not be able to handle a mobile telephone to answer an incoming call. Similarly, if a mobile telephone is carried in a purse or a backpack, the user may not be able to locate and answer the telephone before the caller hangs up, especially if the user is also driving a vehicle when the telephone rings.
Although there are currently some solutions that allow a user to use a mobile telephone without having to hold the telephone, these solutions still require the user to interact with the telephone. For example, one solution provides a headset or a speakerphone function so that the user does not have to hold the mobile telephone during a conversation. However, the user is still required to interact with the mobile telephone to receive, end or initiate a telephone call.
Another solution is an auto-dialer that allows a user to dial a telephone number by speaking the number. However, most auto-dialers require that the user place a call using the keypad of the mobile telephone to a remote server. Typically the auto-dialing service is provided by a network element and the user is required to subscribe to the service before using the service.
Furthermore, with the use of mobile communications devices that are portable susceptible to remote service errors, there are times when the user can not access a network voice mail service because communications with the network cannot be established. While the mobile communications device may include caller identification (“CallerID”) information, this information is limited to conventional incoming line identification information. Consequently, needs exist for providing an apparatus and method to support completely hands-free operation of a communications device and to provide portable services for the communications device.